The Butcher Cover Explained…..

Q: Whose idea was the infamous “butcher cover” from The Beatles’ “Yesterday and Today” album from 1966? How much would one of those butcher cover albums be worth today? – Melissa Henderson
A: In the Museum of Bad Taste, it might be Exhibit A.
The Fab Four, smiling and mop-topped, surrounded by fresh meat and dismembered baby dolls. Maybe all ya need is love, but a little common sense sure comes in handy.
It was Australian photographer Robert Whitaker’s idea to take the photo. Whitaker had in mind a series of surrealist shots. Another picture featured the Beatles, a woman, and a string of sausages representing an umbilical cord. Hmmmm.
NOT true is the long-standing rumor that the Beatles dreamed up the idea because they were resentful that Capitol Records was “butchering” their albums. In 1966, the Beatles had virtually no opinions about American handling of their records.
But they DID like the concept of the photo shoot and are responsible for sending the photos to Capitol as possible album cover art, Beatles historians say.
“This mad photographer … was sort of a Salvador Dali fan,” John Lennon said later. “Usually we were bored stiff … and really hated having photographs took. He had all this meat and babies and all … and we thought, ‘Great, surrealism.’ Because we liked surrealism. We liked it. Or, I remember, I liked it.”
Alan Livingston, president of Capitol Records, normally let the Beatles pick their own album covers. He questioned this one, then reluctantly approved it after complaining to the Beatles manager, Brian Epstein.
DJs and others who received promotional copies immediately protested the gruesome cover and Capitol kicked off what the company called “Operation Retrieve.” Banal covers of the Beatles standing around a steamer trunk were pasted over the old cover.
Only a few of the “butcher” album covers actually made it into stores. Capitol didn’t place them there, but some trickled in through inside connections. It’s not known exactly how many were sold, but very few.
How much is a factory-sealed, mint-condition “butcher” album worth today? One is for sale on the Internet for $18,000.
Thanks to Beatles expert Robert York of Washington state for his help on this.